Seven tips to working from home.

With a vast majority of the South African work force having been forced to work from home, Seeff Blouberg have taken the time to put together seven tips to working from home.

Maintain regular hours

We often find ourselves slipping into a lifestyle that unknowingly breeds stress and a constant feeling of exhaustion. By dedicating specific time parameters to your working hours, room can be made for your other essential daily tasks. Getting adequate sleep, light daily exercise and having a well-balanced diet have all been found to remedy one's stress levels on a day-to-day basis. With a healthy body and mind, daily routines become significantly easier. 

Start a pre- and post-work routine

Ones work day can be greatly affected by how they start their day and even how the previous day came to an end. By getting up and getting dressed, you mentally prepare yourself to take action on the day that lies ahead. Creating a to-do list for the tasks to come will significantly improve your work flow. Finishing your day by changing out of your preferred work attire, will allow for the stress to fall away along with the wardrobe you once wore. Getting dressed for 15 -30 min of daily exercise can force a change in mindset, allowing you to let go of any pent-up frustrations.

Set Ground Rules with the People in Your Space

Working from home with a personal plan of attack is essential, the issue lies in that not everybody lives alone. For those who stay in a shared living space, clearly defined grounds rules for working hours should be set in place. These ground rules would obviously be dependent on each family's unique dynamic. For example, should you work with sensitive legal documentation, it might be best to advise those around you to keep your work space private and especially quiet so as to allow for a conducive work environment.

Keep a Dedicated Office Space

As human beings, our emotions are often unknowingly affected by the environment in which we do our tasks. Its often said that "The hardest part about gym, is getting there." Once we're in an environment with a predetermined emotional mindset associated with it, changing your mindset can be extremely challenging. Separate your comfort spaces (the spaces in which you relax and unwind) from the spaces you generally feel the pressures of work.

Take sick days

Trying to brave the effects of your illness is not always beneficial to the employer. Attempting go about your business whilst ill is not only dangerous with regards to your physical and mental health but can also cause a dip in work performance. Staying in bed whilst sick benefits not only your personal health but those around you, spreading your germs around the home could potentially cause those around you to fall ill.

Install Quality Technology

In the past, working from home might have seemed impossible but with the level of technology that the 21^st century has to offer, now is a better time than any. With the world pandemic that arrived in late 2019, it has become clear how easily an organisation can implement work from home positions. In order to set up your work environment adequately, ensure you have the necessary software and hardware for your specialised position.  Adequate internet connection, a device on which you can work from and data security are the 3 most common concerns for those employers and employees looking to make the change.

Interact with loved ones

The balance between work life and social life will change from one individual to another. Being able to identify how much work one is able to achieve before over exerting themselves is essential to finding that balance. In order to avoid "burnouts" or over exhaustion, try create time for you loved ones. Distracting yourself with stress free conversation and interaction is essential to not only balancing but separating your work life from your personal life.